♪ Madonna - Iconic ♪

I've always wanted to receive my birthday gifts when it's my actual birthday, but it seems this year my family and my best friend S. had other plans! I was supposed to return from Iasi on a Sunday after I finished my work, but I called S. on Saturday night to catch up, one thing led to another and we decided that it would be best for us to properly visit Iasi for three days (we try to visit beautiful places in Romania at least two times a year). She arrived on Monday and we had a great time walking around the Palace of Culture (you can see it in these photos). Then, a massive rain changed our plans, but I believe it was for the best: we hid in the cosy Starbucks Garden and had 'refresha beverages' (a summer special, I'm not usually a fan of black tea, but I really loved this one!) and then proceeded with a shopping spree in Palas ( it wasn't my first this summer, neither S.'s but we sure had a lot more fun shopping together).

Now back to the gift part: S. couldn't wait for another month to give me my birthday gift and considering the fact I last saw her in April, I was on the same page. Just after she arrived in Iasi she gave me a pretty Zara bag and when I opened it I saw my dream summer dress (pictured above) and Madonna's latest album "Rebel Heart". Back to the dress, I changed in an instant and it fit just perfectly so I decided to wear it for our walk. It's been my favorite ever since, because of the back cut and its fabric, it's the only dress I have that makes 36-38 Celsius degrees bearable. 

As for Madonna's latest album, I think it's underrated. She always tries to reinvent herself (I'm not talking about her fashion in this post, her music strictly) and I honestly loved her new take on pop. Obviously, it was thanks to Diplo's contribution, singers like Kanye West (who produced "Illuminati" and "Holy Water" ), Nicki Minaj ( "Bitch I'm Madonna"), Alicia Keys (playing the piano in "Living for Love") and so many other talented people. S. really knows me, it's been our no. 1 choice for our car rides lately!

Beware! I'm on 'Chatty Cathy' mode today

For those who don't live in Romania or simply don't watch the news there has hapened some major changes in my most favorite city in the world- Iaşi . A new complex called 'Palas' has just opened few days ago and this implied some incredible events which I also attended. It's not just the huuuge mall I love (with the most incredible Zara store-seriously, it beats the one from Prague) but also the gardens which are in front of the Palace of Culture and the lake. I had to take pictures, it's just a complete madness, it looks like a whole different city!

Back to the events I attended there was one which has a certain impact on me: Saturday night we tried to achieve a Guiness record by lighting the most sky-lanterns in the world! Needless to say, we made it and it felt just amazing knowing that one of the 12740 fairy lights was mine (there's a picture after the break).  Also, I ate for the first time at Subway. I know, silly me, I felt like a tourist when I took a picture in front of the restaurant but it was something I have been craving for ever since last August when I was in Budapest and we didn't have time to stop at one and grab a sandwich. This experience kind of reminded me of a post I saw on 9gag a while ago because when I was being asked about the ingredients I kept saying random things. The result was delicious , though.

Now, about the outfit of the day: I bought this  dress from Zara at the last sales, when I also bought this versatile wallet and my most loved belt. Also, the leopard flats are the most comfortable in the world!
Against a monster proceeds an intentional unfortunate.